Goodbye to one of the pioneers of world mountaineering: “My goal is not only to climb mountains, it is to help others find their Everest”

American climber Alex Pancoe, 39, died at Camp 2 on Makalu (near the China-Nepal border), at 6,600 meters, after suffering sudden cardiac arrest while resting in his tent. Pancoe had just returned from a day of acclimatization when he suddenly lost consciousness. He died in his sleeping bag, accompanied by guide Terray Sylvester, leader of the expedition organized by Madison Mountaineering.

A brain tumor survivor at 19, Pancoe had made the mountain a platform for social change. This time, he had traveled to the Himalayas with a charitable goal: to raise $27,838—one for every foot of Makalu’s height—to support childhood cancer research at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, the same center where he was treated as a teenager.

Far from seeking personal glory, Pancoe had completed the demanding challenge of the Explorer’s Grand Slam, reaching the Seven Summits and both poles, always with a charitable purpose. Through his Peaks of Mind initiative, he managed to raise nearly a million dollars for cancer causes.

In 2023, he was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia, a disease that complicates oxygenation at altitude. Despite the risk, he decided to take on a new challenge on Makalu, reaffirming his commitment to those fighting cancer. “My goal is not just to climb mountains,” he had written, “it is to help others find their Everest.”

The mountain welcomed him as one of its own: quietly, without tragedy, but with the profound imprint of a life that chose to transform pain into purpose. And a legacy that his family will carry on. RIP, Alex.

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